The Retreat - Recap

Nine hours after the bombing, Agents Marlow and Borjes are giving an update on the status of the Drexler case: Burchell and Fog have escaped federal custody via an accomplice and are nowhere to be found. The “accomplice” used a .45-caliber weapon to kill the agent in the van, and C4 to blow it beyond recognition. They also report that Tyler Fog made two phone calls to his father, and may be headed to one of his houses---the question is which one, as there is a farmhouse in Massachusetts, a penthouse in Manhattan and the main house in the Hamptons to consider. Chambers demands that they pinpoint the location so as to wrap this up as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, on a state route three hours from the city, Tyler is speeding as he races towards Elysium, his father’s “invisible” estate. Jay tells him to slow down, and soon enough there are sirens behind them. Though the car eventually passes, it’s enough to convince Tyler that slowing down might be a good option. On the radio, the news reports are still broadcasting their names in connection to the incident, and they both wonder why Will’s name isn’t being mentioned.

Jay asks Tyler what they can expect once they reach the family estate, and Tyler assures him that Carlton is doing everything he can to help them---calling in favors, tapping contacts, whatever it takes. As they drive on, Jay remembers that things weren’t always so easy for Tyler when it came to his father, and flashes back to an event that happened just after they settled into “the castle.” That day, after coming back from a run, he and Will found Tyler half-dressed when he should have been getting ready for a dinner with Carlton. Tyler then told them that dinner’s been canceled—his father is currently in Miami, picking up a shipping company he’s been trying to acquire for two years. When Will told him that they can have dinner on Carlton’s dime, Tyler admitted that he’s been cut off from the family finances---hence why he was living in grad housing instead of his own place. When Jay mentioned the furnishings in their house, Tyler waved it off, saying that the credit cards paid, not his father. Will finally tells him that in the end, Carlton’s still Tyler’s dad…and that he must have his reasons for what he’s doing.

Further on up the road, Tyler realizes why the flashing lights and sirens---there’s been an accident, and emergency personnel are trying to clear the scene. While Jay thinks that the police will just pass them by, Tyler realizes that the cops are using this as a way to create a makeshift checkpoint in the search for them, and throws the car into reverse. Just as the cops are about to come up to question them, Tyler burns rubber out of the queue and races for the back roads, the cops in hot pursuit. Tyler’s not worried, however…he has the advantage of knowing the dirt roads from when he raced cars with his brother as a kid. After proving his worth behind the wheel and losing the patrol car, both boys heave a sigh of relief…until the tire blows out, sending them crashing into a ditch. As they escape the wreck, Jay wipes the steering wheel down, telling a confused Tyler that the cops think they’re just out on a joy ride, and he wants them to continue thinking that. The two race into the woods just as the cops arrive at the crash site.

As Jay and Tyler make their way towards the estate, Agent Chambers updates his agents on their backgrounds. According to his information, Jay would likely be more of the planner and is skilled with firearms (a couple years of ROTC in college will do that), and Tyler is the financier, having the resources, knowledge of the Middle East due to extensive travel there and has audited more than a few chemical engineering classes while in grad school. Agent Chambers tells the agents that their day is just beginning, and that no one is going home until the two of them are caught. Elsewhere in Manhattan, Kim is undergoing an extensive FBI search of her place for anything that can help pin Jay to the bombing. She reaches to answer a call from her father, and is soon asked by the agents to accompany them down to their office to answer some questions.

During a stop, Jay questions the plan of going to Carlton Fog for help. Tyler is incredulous, telling him that his plan of going to the FBI only got them captured and nearly murdered in the van earlier that afternoon. Jay reminds Tyler that he hasn’t always been on the best terms with his dad, and Tyler replies that Carlton was merely testing him out in the real world “because that’s what dads do.” He then apologizes, saying that unlike Jay, who had to spend much of his childhood taking care of his own affairs, Tyler needed the practice. He tells Jay that he honestly believes that his father is willing to help them, and that he can trust him.

In Manhattan, Chambers checks in with SWAT teams positioned at all three Fog properties. As Tyler swings over a fence and tells Jay “welcome to Elysium,” Marlow explains to Borjes that the name “Elysium” is a reference, not a place. It means “paradise,” and is usually referred to as “Elysium Fields.” She then goes to Chambers, telling him that the location they want is a rural one. Chambers gives the go order on the farmhouse, and they come up empty.

While walking up the front steps, Tyler explains that Carlton had the estate built after his “troubles” and is capable of hiding them for a good long while during a nationwide manhunt…or a messy divorce, which is what his father used it for. Before they can cross the threshold, however, a flurry of armed guards trains their sidearms at the boys, telling them to reach for the sky. Carlton explains that it’s okay, and greets his very relieved son with a hug. He welcomes Jay, who seems more than a bit leery at the prospect of going inside. As he turns up the staircase, he notices a very questionable gentleman standing on the second floor, looking down at him.

Inside the estate, Jay peppers Carlton with questions about Will, but Carlton tells him that his friend seems to be quite the magician…there doesn’t seem be a trace of him anywhere, even in his home state of Maine. When he learns that Kim is being harassed by the FBI, Jay instinctively wants to help her, but Carlton advises him to calm down and come to the table and eat—after all, he says, “I’ll bet you can’t remember the last time you ate something.” Though Carlton tries to chat Jay up, he tells him quite simply that he came for answers. He asks about the man he saw on the second floor, who comes in moments later to tell them that the Massachusetts house has been raided, and that they had best get to business now. He introduces himself as John Ellington, and his company, Folbrook Dunn, specializes in helping people out of situations like Tyler and Jay’s.

In the dining room, the boys notice an odd assortment of machines on the table. When he’s told that part of the process is to take a polygraph, Jay balks, telling Ellington that he’s never heard of a firm that does this sort of thing. Ellington replies that it’s procedure for his line of work, which has nothing to do with handling law. Carlton assures Ellington that the boys will submit to the testing, and tells Jay that “it takes more than one polygraph to clear your name”—and he’s speaking from experience. Meanwhile, in Manhattan, Agent Marlow goes in to talk to Kim, who’s busy working on a drawing of some sort. Marlow tells her that she’s not under arrest but she’s allowed to have a lawyer if she wants. She’s surprised when Kim says that she does indeed want a lawyer---his name is Jay Burchell, and she tells Marlow that he’s innocent of whatever he’s being accused of.

As the testing begins, Jay seems more interested in talking about Will than in going along with this strange interview, and Ellington humors him by asking questions about his relationship with Will. When asked about handling explosives with Will, Jay is insulted. Tyler, however, admits that he learned from Will how to break a lock with nitroglycerin…”as a prank.” Finally, when the questions become more and more personal and less about what happened, Jay abruptly ends his interview, pointedly asking whether it isn’t an interrogation he’s been subjected to. Tyler finishes his by stating that he thinks that “my best friend turned out to be an enemy of the state.”

Kim, meanwhile, is busy deflecting Agent Marlow’s questions, and states that Will avoided cameras, but she produces the drawing she’s been working on…and it’s a spot-on likeness of Will. Once the drawing is handed over, Chambers suddenly takes over the interrogation, sending Marlow out of the room. He then begins to grill Kim on why Jay made a false bomb threat, and when she defends him, shows her photos of the dead bodies found at the museum site and the charred van. Kim is taken aback by the images, but refuses to give up on Jay and Tyler. Kim lets her mind wander back to a time before the guys left for their “road trip,” having told Jay that she’s “not going anywhere” and that after he has his fun with his friends, she’d be waiting for him when he returned.

As Jay tries to make sense of what’s been going on in the dining room, Carlton, Tyler and Ellington arrive, stating that their best option is to head for Europe and begin building their defense. When Ellington mentions that they need a name in which to apply pressure to, Jay reminds them about Will---whom Ellington calls a “ghost” that seems to have taught the boys well when it comes to explosives and how to use them. Jay balks at the thought of leaving, saying that it seems strange that the only two material witnesses in this case—Tyler and himself—are being whisked away from where they can find answers. Ellington replies that Switzerland has “strong extradition laws” and that they’ll be safe there until it’s safe for them to return. “What about extraordinary rendition?” Jay asks, and Tyler wonders what that is. Ellington explains that Jay’s talking about the United States government secretly going in to kidnap terror suspects from countries with little or no extradition, and assures the boys that measures will be taken to prevent that from happening. Exasperated, Jay tosses his coat on—he’s just not going to skip the country and leave Kim to deal with this mess. Carlton tells him that though Jay wants Will to be the answer, someone has made certain that he cannot be of any help to their case. As for Kim, Carlton reminds him that his own wife left when things got rough---and he should come to terms with the fact that Kim might do the same.

But Jay’s had enough. He starts to reach inside his coat, and is quickly taken down by security. Jay slowly hands over what he was reaching for—a picture of himself, Tyler and Will with his face obscured. With that, he explains that it was Kim’s picture and that so far, she’s been the only one trying to actually help them with all this. When Tyler protests that the idea of going to Europe isn’t entirely insane, Jay tells him that no matter where he goes, his life is still the same…and for him, that life is here, in the United States.

In the FBI morgue, Agent Borjes is conferring with the resident coroner, who says that based on Kim’s drawing and description of Will, their charred body from the museum just might be the guy everyone’s talking about. Upstairs, as Kim makes for the door, Chambers stops her. When she protests, saying she’s been there all night and was told she could leave, Chambers informs her that it’s very likely that this “Will” that she and her boyfriend are so anxious about may just be in their morgue. If that’s true, Will can’t help the boys anymore. Just then, Kim receives a call on her cell from a blocked number, and Chambers snatches the phone from her to set up a trace. He tells her in no uncertain terms that if she tips Jay off about her being questioned by the FBI, he’ll arrest her for obstruction. Kim takes the call, and Jay tells her that he’s worried about her. He says that he “came up here” where he thought he could find help, but he’s not finding it. He asks Kim if she’s been contacted by the feds, to which Kim says no. Jay then asks if she was able to find a picture of Will, to which she again replies no. Noting that her answers are unusually brief and clipped, Jay finally asks her if it’s a bad time. Kim tells him no, but discreetly ends the call, blaming it on a cell tower drop. Chambers is agitated, but can’t disprove her claim, so he has her taken to an adjacent room on the off-chance that Jay calls back.

At Elysium, Jay’s mind wanders back to when Kim told him about getting a new job opportunity in New York. He is happy for her, but he noted then that he thought they would move to New York together. She reassured him then that she wasn’t going anywhere…

Jay then snaps back to the present and makes his way out towards the stairs, where Carlton stops him. He apologizes for what happened last night, but he explains that after his own problems with the government, he swore that nothing like this should happen to either Tyler or his brother if he could help it. Jay accepts the apology, but says that he’s not so sure about fleeing to Europe. He also states that he just doesn’t trust Ellington, but manages to sidestep the question of trusting Carlton himself. Carlton explains that he doesn’t know Ellington either---he merely asked his company to send someone that “could make Saddam Hussein look like a saint,” and Ellington was what he got. Carlton also tells Jay that he’s impressed with Jay’s self-sufficiency and pragmatism; they’re traits that his son Tyler seems to lack. “He really can’t handle life’s complications,” Carlton adds, and confides that Tyler “really needs you to be there for him.” After giving the matter a little thought, Jay reluctantly agrees to head off to Europe with Tyler.

Outside, Tyler hugs his father and tells him good-bye, then gets into the car along with Jay. Jay’s thoughts wander to an earlier moment in New Haven when he accidentally walked in on one of Tyler’s marathon telephone fights with his dad. Tyler was clearly upset and frustrated, and after a few quick retorts, hung up the phone and stormed outside. Jay mentions that Carlton seemed like a jerk, but Will reminded him that they don’t know the whole story behind Tyler’s problems. “Maybe it’ll be good for him,” Will said, “learning to live on his own. Anyway, if it weren’t for Carlton, Tyler wouldn’t even be here.”

As they drive away from the estate, Ellington mentions that he’s glad that Jay changed his mind about leaving. Tyler asks if things like this are commonplace in his line of work, and Ellington says that “it happens more often than you’d think.” He also tells Jay that if things don’t resolve themselves fairly soon, arrangements can be made to bring Kim to their location. “Europe is a photographer’s dream,” he comments, just as a lone sheriff’s vehicle pulls right in front of them. Ellington goes to take care of the situation, telling the boys to keep out of sight. Jay turns to Tyler and asks him when he told about Kim being a photographer—it’s not something he mentioned the night before. Tyler shrugs it off, stating that Ellington and his associates have that kind of information at the ready. Just then, Jay sees something he doesn’t like---it’s Ellington, standing behind the sheriff’s officer and shooting her twice in the back. Jay shoves Tyler out of the car and tells him to run; “this guy is not here to help us,” he shouts. Ellington notices that his charges are escaping and fires shots at them as they run further into the woods.

In Manhattan, Marlow goes in to Chambers’s office to discuss the case with him. Chambers compliments her on her work in gathering the information, but Marlow says there’s something not right in thinking that the boys were acting alone in this—after all, terrorists strike out for political reasons, not personal ones as have been attributed to Burchell and Fog. Chambers tells Marlow that the only reason she’s not running this investigation is because of her involvement in an earlier incident, and that if she helps to catch Burchell and Fog, her “mistakes” will be forgotten. Marlow leaves, but it’s clear that she’s not entirely settled on the matter.

The boys make their way to a lonely airstrip, where they break into the locked hangar with Tyler’s quick thinking (and a fire extinguisher). Jay wants to find a phone, and Tyler wants to contact his father on the off-chance the Ellington comes back for them. When Jay touches on the possibility that Carlton may have known about Ellington’s plans, Tyler defends his father, saying that he hired the firm, not Ellington himself. Within moments, however, Ellington is on the scene. He walks into the hangar, his pistol ready and slowly whistling an unsettling tune. He spies Tyler hiding behind some large crates and aims, but Jay springs out from behind another crate and begins trying to disarm him. The two fight, until Ellington pins Jay to the ground and holds a nasty-looking spike over his chest, trying to drive it home. Jay struggles to prevent Ellington from succeeding, and cries out for Tyler to grab the gun. Moments later, there’s a nasty thwack and Ellington drops to the ground, unconscious. Jay looks up to see his friend holding an oversized wrench that he throws down next to his attacker.

A few minutes later, Jay is trying to revive Ellington, now trussed with extension cords and immobile. He demands to know who sent him and who he’s working for, but Ellington remains mute. Tyler leans in and demands to know whether his father knew anything about this; Ellington replies simply that “your father is the least of your problems.” Just then the phone rings, and Jay holds it up to Ellington’s ear, motioning him to answer. The call is clipped and mysterious, with the caller asking if “the packages are ready” and Ellington replying, “It’s done.” Jay tells Ellington he’s figured it out: there was no plan to get he or Tyler out of the country; they were instead supposed to be eliminated. He demands to know who Ellington works for, pointing his own pistol at him, but Ellington merely tells him to shoot. Tyler tells Jay to take his keys, which he does, and the two of them run for the car, Jay tossing the keys to Tyler as he throws it in gear.

Over the airwaves, the President is giving a speech on how the events of yesterday will not stop the country form doing as it always does. He promises to find “the enemy within” and tells the nation that he has allocated every resource at his disposal to finding and apprehending the suspects. Carlton then snaps off the broadcast with a grim look on his face. In Manhattan, Borjes tells Marlow that state cops have found a wrecked car in a ditch near Fog company property…and the car was purchased in Queens. Meanwhile, Chambers escorts Kim home, and she walks in to her whole place being turned upside down and trashed. Chambers tells her that this is what she has to look forward to until her boyfriend comes in, and Kim responds by asking whether a personal escort by the agent-in-charge is standard practice. Chambers tells her that they’ll have to be working on the same side…and that she’d better get used to the idea.

Pulling to a road several miles from the airfield, Tyler tries to turn right, but Jay stops him, asking what he plans to do. Tyler replies that he wants to go back to his father’s; he needs to know that Carlton didn’t sell them out to be murdered. Jay’s mind processes everything he knows about the Fog’s relationship, and he tells his friend that in the end, it doesn’t matter---they can’t go back. He tells a confused and frustrated Tyler that they, themselves, have to solve this, and Tyler reluctantly turns the car left towards a possible answer.

Meanwhile, a man is placing his metal objects in a basket before he heads through a detector, and his phone rings. He takes the call, and learns through a contact that the boys are dead. The man smiles and walks through a door bearing an official seal: Department of Homeland Security.